


Teddy Bears

by DesolatedDescole (BrambleTakato)



Category: Layton Kyouju Series | Professor Layton Series
Genre: Azran Legacy, Azran Legacy Spoilers, Constructive Criticism Welcome, Fluff, Gen, Layton Kyouju | Professor Layton Spoilers, One Shot, Platonic Relationships, hehe bostonius goes brrr, we need more Luke and Des moments I stg
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:46:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25231084
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrambleTakato/pseuds/DesolatedDescole
Summary: Desmond is unable to sleep during a midnight trip to Torrido, though soon finds out that he isn't the only one.
Relationships: Desmond Sycamore & Luke Triton
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	Teddy Bears

Clouds roamed freely past the windows, ever so subtly rolling in on themselves as the Bostonius passed through them with a gentle mechanical hum. Stars had filled the sky to the brim, yet from the soft cracks of the clouds yielded an abyss below, deep and unkind. Dark. Sometimes when there isn’t a moon out, it’s hard to guess that it was an ocean to begin with.

Desmond had been gazing out of the wide window near the driver seat at a distance with tired maroon eyes, while Raymond, his faithful butler, drove silently. He quietly appreciated his dedication, and even wondered if he should take over so that Raymond could at least rest. Then again, Raymond did measure that they’d be arriving to Torrido in the early morning, so he supposed that the old man would take that opportunity to rest up.

Usually they’d make sure not to fly during the night, yet because of a recent storm that came on ever so suddenly, they had to slow down, and were now caught to soar above the waves that loomed below, threatening to pull them into a void, into death, if they went too close.

Desmond couldn’t help but to look down at his hands. He was reminded of how small he was, yet how large his goal was compared to him. Desmond figured people were like ants; One would struggle to accomplish a thing, but multiple could do practically anything they desired with the right mindset. He found himself smirking to himself, a mixture of amusement and disgust.

Ever since the true Desmond died, he would never question existential related topics. He already knew what he had to do without a doubt. But now?

… His thoughts were cut off by the sound of soft, timid footsteps slowly approaching him. He mentally prepared himself as he turned around.

He would’ve expected Layton, Aurora, or perhaps even Keats. This time, a boy was there, gazing at him, tiredly too. Luke seemed to be clothed with baby blue pajamas, a brown teddy bear cuddled in his arms.

“Professor?” Luke felt weird saying that. Usually he’d say that to Layton, but he was always told that a true gentleman had to act proper.

“Desmond is just fine.” It was almost as if Desmond had a sixth sense, immediately catching on to Luke’s feelings. The child was an open book, and he even questioned if Luke was somehow more readable than himself. He cracked a mild smile. Luke blinked a moment, processing what to say next as if he was caught off-guard. He looked away shyly. 

“... I can’t sleep.”

Desmond’s gaze turned sympathetic. He related to Luke in an instant. He had been unable to sleep properly for god knows how long, and Desmond couldn’t help but to frown slightly. In fact, he was up for the same reason. Raymond always told him, or rather requested of him to please try and take care of himself by sleeping, though even if Desmond wanted to, every time he tried he’d either not be able to or a nightmare would be there to keep him “company”. He hated it. It was an endless cycle of being internally fearful of sleeping.

Though he soon drowned out those feelings as much as he could. Fear. Desmond couldn’t have fear. That’d only distract him from his goals. But either-way, he knew he had to gain more trust in the group for his plan to be successful. Luke had already given him a suspicious glance or two in the past. A clever boy, he mused.

“Is something bothering you?” Desmond said as he kept his disguise of a gentle attitude, yet a small part of him was curious of what the boy’s answer would be. Luke opened his mouth to speak, though nothing came out, a contemplative expression worn on him.

Desmond simply stared, and after a few moments of nothing but the sounds of the humming from the Bostonius, he walked to the left. Luke’s gaze followed him, only to raise an eyebrow when he sat down at the couches, his crimson eyes looking towards him and patted the seat next to him. Luke paused, though eventually went over to Desmond and sat next to him, keeping his attention to his teddy bear.

“What’s their name?”

Luke perked up slightly and glanced over at Desmond, surprised that he would ask that, and confused for a moment until he followed his deep red gaze. He was also looking at the bear. “Oh, uh… George.” Luke said, though this time with a small smile. Desmond returned his attention to Luke. It was… Nostalgic, in a way, seeing the teddy bear snuggled with Luke so protectively yet subconsciously.

Desmond had paused for a moment, then chuckled slightly. A little tale from his past that doesn’t relate to Descole directly wouldn’t hurt, right?

“I had a teddy bear when I was younger too.” He said, his mild smirk still worn on him. Luke seemed somewhat taken off-guard. “You did?” The curiosity in his voice was so painfully obvious. Desmond simply nodded. “It kept me company during my years as well. Their name was…” His expression fell thoughtful for a moment, reaching into the depths of his memories to pull out what he was looking for. “... Oscar.”

Luke’s awkward attitude almost immediately wore off. “Do you still have him?” He said, his smile growing subtly bigger. Desmond sighed slightly. “Unfortunately, no. But I did make many memories with him when I was about your age, and he was one of the best friends I had.” As much as Desmond might’ve been hesitant to talk about his past, this little memory back then made him feel like he wanted to speak more about it. He never felt like that in quite some time. It felt… So foreign, yet at the same time, familiar.

The fact that Luke was staring at him with noticeable eagerness made Desmond assume he wanted to hear more. He figured that it wouldn’t hurt. “One time I got really sick, and I didn’t have any company with me. But despite that, Oscar stayed with me no matter what.” He paused, trying his best to sugarcoat his situations and make them more imaginative for a child. “Another time, I was left all alone, and I was rather sad because of that. Oscar never found me annoying, in fact, he was always willing to listen.”

Desmond’s smile, first forced and a part of his “disguised personality”, soon found itself becoming genuine. Second-nature. He could see Raymond from the corner of his eye lift his head up slightly, as if unintentionally eavesdropping. “What about George?” Desmond soon asked, hoping that Luke might feel at ease talking about himself.

Luke wore a thoughtful expression, then gently nodded at himself, showing the teddy bear-- George-- a bit more when he placed it on his own lap while hugging it, instead of just keeping it somewhat hidden away from Desmond. “Whenever I have a really bad dream, George is always there to comfort me!” Finally, an innocent, child-like grin had grown on Luke. Desmond found himself wearing an amused expression. “Actually, he’s always there for me… He never left my side.” Luke continued a tiny bit quietly, but the maroon-eyed man caught what he said regardless.

“It sounds like George and Oscar would’ve gotten along really well if I still had him.” Desmond said with a bit of a chuckle. He expected Luke to giggle, but instead his expression wore a curious look to it. “... Um, what happened to Oscar anyway?” Luke asked a bit slowly, Desmond narrowed his eyes to try and remember. He eventually shrugged. “I lost him one day, perhaps he’s still on a grand adventure around the world, much like what we’re doing right now. Maybe one day, we might be reunited.” He said with a playful tone of voice. Luke looked back at George, though Desmond’s gaze turned thoughtful.

He never realized how familiar the situation of him and Oscar was compared to him and Layton’s. Being tightly bonded with each-other, though one day having to let him go and lose him seemingly forever… How he was always there for Desmond up until that point…

He snapped out of it. Not now. Not when he’s already so close to reaching his goal.

Desmond realized that Luke was now staring at him though, and this time, a slightly concerned gaze met his. He figured he was just as readable as Luke with his emotions sometimes. “Are you alright?” Luke asked, making Desmond pause momentarily. He soon got himself together though, disguising his emotions to the best of his ability. He could copy someone’s appearance and personality, though with having his eyes exposed like this, emotions was one thing he never was able to nail down on with hiding.

“I’m doing alright, don’t mind me.” He simply said. A hushed “oh” was able to be made out from Luke, before he looked back down at George, then got up. Desmond watched as Luke took a step or two away, though didn’t expect him to look back at him with a tired yet genuine smile.

“Um… Thank you, Professor.”

Desmond would’ve teased him for still acting gentlemanly when he said that calling him Desmond is fine before, but it didn’t cross his mind at the moment. Rather, he seemed confused before Luke continued. “I was a little scared at first, but… I have George with me, and everyone else too! I forgot that a little bit from all of the travelling, but… Thank you for reminding me.” The last part was a little quiet, but not because Luke wanted to be. He was trying his best to hold back a yawn, even if that meant sacrificing the volume of his voice. Desmond still felt… A strange feeling. It was warm and nostalgic, yet for the life of him he couldn’t remember. He had felt it before at the Phong Gi festival to make the chief laugh, and when he was helping to solve the Popoño mystery with Layton and the others. Before, every time he was around any of Layton’s friends as his true self, Descole, he felt nothing that even fit that.

But now? This feeling kept coming back ever since he took on the disguise of Desmond. First he thought it was a one-time thing, and now it kept coming back like a pest. Yet he could never find the right pesticide to kill it off effectively, the feeling would be temporary but would always come back in one way or another.

“No problem… If you ever need anything, I’m happy to help.” Saying that word, “happy”, made him furrow an eyebrow slightly.

Happy, was that the word? No, he felt happiness before when his scheme would work or if something went his way, or that cocky type of happiness he’d feel when he bested Layton in his own way. So then… Why did the word “happy” feel like it fit, but only vaguely?

Luke however didn’t notice his dilemma, giving an innocent smile once more with a nod. After some seconds, he started to slowly make his way back to the Bostonius’ office. They had to put some air mattresses in there as the Bostonius didn’t exactly have any bedrooms, and Desmond was sure to hide his work and notes somewhere else before they arrived. “I’m going to bed-” His sentence was interrupted with a yawn. “-goodnight!” Luke looked back at the man with crimson glasses while he opened the door. Desmond only gave a silent wave before he entered the office, closing the door quietly.

Regardless, Desmond fell back into thought when Luke left, leaning back against the purple sofa slightly. His thoughts were soon interrupted by a familiar voice, a voice from his dear butler.

“Master, I advise you should get some rest as well.” Desmond turned his head towards him as he heard the smile in his voice, and sure enough, Raymond’s mustache wasn’t enough to hide the accomplished smirk. Desmond stared questionably, though it soon hit him as he frowned. “I’m still prioritizing my goal, you do know that. I just need to gain their trust.” He shortly takes off his shoes and lays down on the sofa, though. He always refused to sleep in the office with Layton and the others. Desmond wore a somewhat frustrated expression, however.

For once, he felt conflicted. Why? He couldn’t put a finger on it either. And all of these emotions that seem so familiar that swirled around him? He felt irritated that he couldn’t pinpoint the emotions and their origins exactly. He shifted onto his side, taking off his glasses and putting them on the small table near the arm of the sofa.

And that night, despite what he may have felt or thought, Desmond knew that he, for once, managed to fall asleep quicker than he usually did. He wondered if Luke somehow helped with that unintentionally.

**Author's Note:**

> I literally wrote this while sleep deprived in like an hour or two because I got sudden inspiration aknwekjgnerkjg--
> 
> Have a good rest of your day/night, though! I'm happy that you took the time to read this little story, haha. I would love to get some criticism, though I admit this isn't as detailed as what my writing usually is.


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